Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Music

Romanticism: 19th Century Literary and Artistic Movement

The 19th century, marked by the consequences of the Declaration of Independence and the French Revolution, saw the rise of Romanticism. This era transformed the contemporary world with the triumph of the Industrial Revolution.

Key Values in Romantic Literature

Romantic literature emphasized the irrational aspects of the individual:

• Sentiment: Love became the central theme for Romantic writers. However, unbridled passion could lead to destruction.
• Dreams: Nighttime, premonitions, visionary dimensions, and dreamlike images were valued, paving the way for Surrealism.
• Imagination: Originality and individual creativity were prized over imitation, becoming the model and tools for a closed explanation.

20th Century Music: A Transformation

20th-century music transformed into a variety of styles and currents, breaking the unity of language for a new world of sound relations. Key movements include:

Romanticism

Romanticism used music to express subjective and subtle emotions through modal melodies, independent chords, and a large, colorful timbre.

Impressionism

Impressionism, a typical French movement, used music to evoke moods and atmospheres.

Expressionism

Expressionism sought to express the most heartbreaking emotions through atonal music and sprechgesang-laden dissonance.

Early Vanguard Movements

Futurism

Futurism introduced noise and machine sounds into music.

Dadaism

Dadaism rebelled against all established forms of art.

Twelve-Tone Technique

The twelve-... Continue reading "20th Century Music: Styles, Movements, and Evolution" »

Literary Devices Explored

Alliteration occurs when repeating a phoneme or group of phonemes (e.g., "...shady and spacious shelter...").

Onomatopoeia is a type of alliteration mimicking real sounds.

Anaphora is the repetition of a word or words at the beginning of phrases or verses.

Paronomasia involves associating two words with similar signifiers but different meanings.

Polysyndeton uses abundant and repeated conjunctions to coordinate language elements.

Epithet adds adjectives to characterize a noun for praise or blame (e.g., "O sweet treasures...").

Asyndeton is the opposite of polysyndeton, omitting conjunctions where they might appear.

Ellipsis involves removing terms understood from context.

Hyperbaton alters usual word order.

Parallelism divides... Continue reading "Literary Devices: Alliteration, Onomatopoeia, Metaphor & More" »

Goya's Life and Turbulent Times

Francisco Goya spent most of his life in Madrid. He also lived through the contradictions of the Spanish Enlightenment, experiencing the benefits of the liberalization measures enacted by Joseph Bonaparte. He also witnessed the creation of the Constitution of Cadiz (1812) and the loss of the Spanish colonies (1824). The return of Fernando VII unleashed persecution against liberals and those who had collaborated with the 'intruder' king. In 1820, the Riego revolt offered hope to Spanish liberals, and the Constitution of Cadiz was reinstated, but the intervention of the 'Hundred Thousand Sons of St. Louis' sent by the Holy Alliance led to the restoration of Fernando VII's absolute power and the beginning of a period... Continue reading "The Art of Goya: From Court Painter to Modern Master" »

Traditional Spanish Lyric Poetry and Epic

Traditional Lyric Poetry

Traditional lyric poetry reflects the feelings of the people. Poetry accompanied fieldwork, domestic chores, and parties. It was designed to be easily memorized, as the population was largely illiterate. This anonymous poetry was transmitted orally, recited, and performed by juglares (minstrels), who traveled from town to town.

Common themes included love, fiestas, processions, and everyday activities. The language was characterized by short sentences, communicative density, and directness, with frequent interjections and expressions of affection.

Key Examples of Traditional Lyric Poetry

• Jarchas: These were short poems that appeared at the end of a longer composition called a muwassaha.

Romanticism: A Literary Movement

The Romantic movement began in the 1830s with the return of exiled liberals. The Romantic era sought to change the world, but when desires went unfulfilled, feelings of frustration and pessimism arose, leading to a search for escape.

This cultural, artistic, and literary movement started in Germany and spread throughout Europe and America in the nineteenth century. It is characterized by a desire for innovation, the defense of freedom, and the exaltation of feelings.

Key Features of Romanticism

Thematic Features

1. Freedom: Exaltation of freedom and a taste for characters that symbolize that freedom, such as pirates, the condemned, and devils.
2. Feelings: Love that defies social conventions to reach the beloved.
3. Landscape:

Defining Romanticism: Core Principles

Romanticism was a cultural movement that opposed the principles of the Enlightenment. It emphasized emotion, individualism, and the glorification of the past and nature.

Key Features of Romanticism

• Rejection of reason; imagination is emphasized.
• Preference for nature, often reflecting the mood of the artist.
• Idealistic vision, driving the romantic individual's constant search for freedom.
• Search for exotic and distant lands as a means to evade an unpleasant reality.
• Interest in the traditional and recovery of legends.
• Emphasis on the irrational and the mysterious.

Major Themes in Romantic Literature

• Love (often desperate and impossible).
• The ruins.
• The yearning for freedom.
• Nature, also reflecting the feelings of the